Love AD...but lets face it...we are almost certainly going to lose if we give him a bank busting contract. How many non quarterbacks that got mega pay days ever played better after their big pay day then they did before?? Would love to hear some examples....On the other hand the league is littered with examples of guys that got big pay days then got injured or went down hill quickly....JJ watt....robert quinn....Suh.....Richard Sherman....Albert haynesworth....adam archuleta....stephen gilmore....Tpughest thing to do is to part with your prime players just before they begin to decline...we could likely have traded AD for 2 number 1 picks....but instead we sign him to some bloated contract....then he hurts his back....and in two years we dump him for a 4 and a 6 and eat a bunch of dead money. It sucks that the nfl has come to this....i have been a fan since the 70s...when teams stayed together....but the smart thing would have been to unload AD for some top picks....as much as it would have hurt to see him go.....

You sound like a Chargers fan. He's the best dlineman in the league and you don't think they should pay him? Thinking like that has kept more franchises in mediocrity as much as perhaps anything else. The Chargers didn't want to pay Eric Weddle and it's only now years later they probably have replaced him. They didn't want to pay Vincent Jackson and his eventual replacement Keenan Allen has been injured as much as he's been healthy. That my friend is a loser mentality. Either you own a franchise committed to being consistently a Super Bowl contender or you fine with a team that simply is competitive with simply getting to the playoffs being good enough.

I agree with that part. AD will get paid the big bucks. In today's NFL it's what happens.

I too agree with both of you. I”ve said this numerous times and i’ll continue to say it. NO PLAYER in the league deserves to be paid so handsomely while our soldiers and first responders make pennies on the dollar compared to them.

In the grand scheme of things which is more important? But that just goes to show where our values lie in America.

Unfortunately as long as there continues to be fans like us, myself included, who continue to buy merchandise and support these guys, then players of Donald’s caliber will continue to get paid.

He is to the Rams what Warren Sapp was to the Buccaneers. So it is what it is. Personally, I hope that he is a Ram for the long term. I just hope the price isn’t so rich that we have to cut other talent around him just to be able to afford his contract. He should be good for at least 2 good Super Bowl runs......JMO

Love AD...but lets face it...we are almost certainly going to lose if we give him a bank busting contract. How many non quarterbacks that got mega pay days ever played better after their big pay day then they did before?? Would love to hear some examples....On the other hand the league is littered with examples of guys that got big pay days then got injured or went down hill quickly....JJ watt....robert quinn....Suh.....Richard Sherman....Albert haynesworth....adam archuleta....stephen gilmore....Tpughest thing to do is to part with your prime players just before they begin to decline...we could likely have traded AD for 2 number 1 picks....but instead we sign him to some bloated contract....then he hurts his back....and in two years we dump him for a 4 and a 6 and eat a bunch of dead money. It sucks that the nfl has come to this....i have been a fan since the 70s...when teams stayed together....but the smart thing would have been to unload AD for some top picks....as much as it would have hurt to see him go.....

OK?
First of all AD is the best in the league bar none. He is the reverse of Sam Bradford - Has outplayed his contract and stayed healthy and productive. He is a leader on this team who is in negotiations for his second contract which is usually the most important contract an NFL player will receive in their career. He has not missed a regular season game this season while his agents and the team work on a contract that would make him a Ram for probably the next 5 years and your solution is to trade your best player for a couple of No 1 crap shoot picks. Im sorry but that is just plain senseless. If you want to compare AD to other players I would recommend the likes of Khalil Mack who is currently in contract negotiations or maybe Von Miller but dont ever put his name in the same sentence as Albert Haynesworth, Adam Archuleta or Stephen Gilmore because that is an insult to anyone reading this posts intelligence. You need to just sit back and let the Rams and Aaron Donald do business and get their deal done. The Rams are a pretty savy team when it comes to contract negotiations and I believe they will get a deal done with their BEST player. Aaron Donald will be a Ram for some time and whatever the contract number it will be a bargain down the road as he continues his Hall of Fame bound career.

Love AD...but lets face it...we are almost certainly going to lose if we give him a bank busting contract. How many non quarterbacks that got mega pay days ever played better after their big pay day then they did before?? Would love to hear some examples....On the other hand the league is littered with examples of guys that got big pay days then got injured or went down hill quickly....JJ watt....robert quinn....Suh.....Richard Sherman....Albert haynesworth....adam archuleta....stephen gilmore....Tpughest thing to do is to part with your prime players just before they begin to decline...we could likely have traded AD for 2 number 1 picks....but instead we sign him to some bloated contract....then he hurts his back....and in two years we dump him for a 4 and a 6 and eat a bunch of dead money. It sucks that the nfl has come to this....i have been a fan since the 70s...when teams stayed together....but the smart thing would have been to unload AD for some top picks....as much as it would have hurt to see him go.....

Dude, you really have to lay off the depressants.
It's the way it is - good players get paid.
Know it, learn it, live it.

Well the Rams can't sign Donald and they most likely can't trade him. He's under contract for this year, but does he play without his guaranteed money? Look at the moves the Rams have made. Signing Suh, drafting Franklin with one of their top picks before they went Linebacker. Look at Sneads verbiage on the matter, " When we ink the deal or not I can't put a timeline on it. It's a priority as it always will be until we get it done". Doesn't sound like an imminent signing.

They changed the rules so players get paid big money on their 2nd contract and not their rookie season for a reason...the guys who get that huge money are the guys that actually deserve it.

I'm not a fan of trading a future hall of famer and feel the Rams have to retain their core players...I also don't believe Suh was brought in as a replacement to AD when he doesn't sign...but I do see the point in not having a DT sign for 80+ mil guaranteed money and strapping the team...I just don't happen to agree.

Obviously AD is looking for record breaking money, kinda why we are still discussing this, and I don't think the Rams are willing to go ther as they know they have him for at least a couple more years.

Well the Rams can't sign Donald and they most likely can't trade him. He's under contract for this year, but does he play without his guaranteed money? Look at the moves the Rams have made. Signing Suh, drafting Franklin with one of their top picks before they went Linebacker. Look at Sneads verbiage on the matter, " When we ink the deal or not I can't put a timeline on it. It's a priority as it always will be until we get it done". Doesn't sound like an imminent signing.

Why can’t they sign AD? What’s your reasoning? They signed Suh to a one year deal. He will get big bucks next season. The drafting of Franklin was a depth piece likely to fill the void when Suh moves on. AD is under contract for this season and could be franchised for as many years as the Rams choose to if it was in their interest. The fact is the Rams hold all the leverage. That being said they are negotiating in good faith and like AD’s agents are looking at the other deals out there that are being negotiated like Khalil Mack to set the market. AD would lose his ability to become a free agent next season if he sits out training camp. A deal is going to get done. The sky is not falling Chicken Little. Your clueless.

OK. Here is a cynical solution to this challenge. Force him to play this year for his 8 million + (or he adds another year to his tenure with the team). Then tag him 2 years in a row and let him walk or trade him . Chances are he will have peaked by then.

Not necessarily advocating this scenario, but bringing in Suh has certainly given the team new leverage.

Don't think any DT is worth the 120+ mil that Donald is likely to get. Especially the 70+ mil GUARANTEED part of that but he would be hard to trade IMO because the other 31 teams also know that a DT ain't gonna be the difference between winning a Lombardi or not. That said, the Rams will probably sign him after Mack gets paid so he can be the highest paid Defensive player in the league. If not, they will just Franchise AD two years in a row, deal with him missing a lot of practices and then let him walk for a 3rd round comp pick. JMO.

OK. Here is a cynical solution to this challenge. Force him to play this year for his 8 million + (or he adds another year to his tenure with the team). Then tag him 2 years in a row and let him walk or trade him . Chances are he will have peaked by then.

Not necessarily advocating this scenario, but bringing in Suh has certainly given the team new leverage.

Those are definitely options and both sides are very aware of this....but is it worth it making him disgruntled? If AD has priced himself out of the Rams price range, I doubt it with all the cap space they have coming, then this scenario just might play out. A trade possibility also exists.

It's Donald's agents that concern me. I don't know if they are reasonable people. So far it's Donald I think that has lost out. I think the Rams wanted to pay him last year. But if his agent is foolish and self-serving, and I have some reason to think he is, then I don't want the Rams to sign him at the expense of other positional players being lost. They can tag him after this or trade him.

It's Donald's agents that concern me. I don't know if they are reasonable people. So far it's Donald I think that has lost out. I think the Rams wanted to pay him last year. But if his agent is foolish and self-serving, and I have some reason to think he is, then I don't want the Rams to sign him at the expense of other positional players being lost. They can tag him after this or trade him.

Meh....it's the agents job to get as much as he can for his client, and himself. IMO....at the end of the day it's AD's decision...the hold out was AD's decision...the not agreeing yet is AD's decision.....putting blame on the agent is wrong IMO.

Donald knows that accruing this last year towards free agency doesn't mean a thing because the Rams can simply franchise him as many times as they want although the salary escalates when you do that multiple times. Donald only has one leverage option and that is to hold out, not just in training camp but into the season. This is his window to get that guaranteed money, so expect this to go on and on into the season and maybe beyond.

It's Donald's agents that concern me. I don't know if they are reasonable people. So far it's Donald I think that has lost out. I think the Rams wanted to pay him last year. But if his agent is foolish and self-serving, and I have some reason to think he is, then I don't want the Rams to sign him at the expense of other positional players being lost. They can tag him after this or trade him.

AD is a big boy. Not being held against his will. If he wants a deal to get done, he would get it done. If he's holding out to make sure he gets more than Mack, then it's his choice.If that's the case, it's who and greed.

I doubt this is anything like one side vs another side. AD looked happy in the interview asking about potentially signing Suh. AD said "Bring him in Coach". This is business. AD provides a service and RAMS pay for that service. Both sides want that to continue.

I love AD too, but if we can get two top 5 picks in consecutive years, plus pay them about half the money we'd have to give Donald, then it'd make sense to at least, think this thing all the way through. If the NFL was like MLB (no cap), it would be a no-brainer to sign Aaron Donald to whatever contract the team sees fit, but unfortunately, there are parameters in football that have to be adhered to.

In theory, I don't like having the highest paid defensive tackle or player in the league. How can that be a good value? He has to be the very best player, every single year of his contract and has to stay healthy every game just to provide fair value for the contract.

I love AD too, but if we can get two top 5 picks in consecutive years, plus pay them about half the money we'd have to give Donald, then it'd make sense to at least, think this thing all the way through.

Or if we could trade AD for Batman and Superman they would probably play for minimum salary since they have plenty of money already.

I love AD too, but if we can get two top 5 picks in consecutive years, plus pay them about half the money we'd have to give Donald, then it'd make sense to at least, think this thing all the way through.

Or if we could trade AD for Batman and Superman they would probably play for minimum salary since they have plenty of money already.

I just don't think they'd be any good at football, but I get the sentiment.

I love AD too, but if we can get two top 5 picks in consecutive years, plus pay them about half the money we'd have to give Donald, then it'd make sense to at least, think this thing all the way through.

Or if we could trade AD for Batman and Superman they would probably play for minimum salary since they have plenty of money already.

I heard the Flash is available...think I would rather have him because the league has outlawed the use of the Bat belt making Batman a JAG IMO.